libpsys

The psys library provides a simple interface to the system package manager of a Linux system. It allows installation programs to notify the package manager of the installation, uninstallation, and update of third-party software packages, and to request these packages to be added to or removed from the system package database. The psys library interface is generic and not tied to a specific package management system or Linux distribution; it is meant to be a proposal for a future version of the LSB standard.

Last announcement

I proposed the psys library interface as starting point for an LSB standard on the LSB's [packaging] mailing list. The discussion can be followed here:
https://lists.linux-foundation.org/pipermail/packaging/2010-June/001235.html
In this announcement message, I also point to prior discussion on the initial idea of an API to integrate installation programs with the package manager which was spawned by Ian Murdock (called the "Berlin Packaging API"), the founder of the Debian project, and a former implementation of that idea of mine back in 2008 called the "Burgdorf Package API".

Recent releases

Release Notes: This is the initial release of the psys library. It offers the following features: a first revision of an API for installing, updating, and uninstalling; the possibility to define simple metadata for a package to install; and a basic backend for RPM-based distributions.